20 Dec 2021
Retirement: A New Chapter for Jeff Tan
Jeff Tan has made Chevron his second home for close to three decades, working tirelessly to build and support the Caltex brand. After 29 exciting years with the organisation, he finally stepped into a new chapter in life on 29 October 2021: retirement.
Armed with a degree in Finance from Wichita State University, Jeff joined Chevron back in 1992. His expertise in Retail and Business Development soon saw Jeff taking on leadership roles that covered Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia. He was instrumental in building the Retail Business in Cambodia when he was posted there in 2004, and then in Singapore in 2007 where he was the Asia Pacific Regional Order Fulfillment Project Manager.
Jeff’s journey with Chevron has been filled with numerous achievements as well as relationships built over the decades, and he said it best in his official farewell email: “This might be the end of my official duty, but it’s definitely not the end of our friendship. Your collaboration and tenacity to get things done, have honestly been one of the best parts of working in Chevron.”
It’s no surprise that many who have had the privilege of working with Jeff as colleagues and partners wanted to share their well wishes for him, so let’s hear some of them and get to know Jeff Tan from the perspective of the people who have become his friends over the years.
1. Dato’ Saw Chang Heng and Miss Saw Siam Ching of Pen Petroleum Sdn Bhd
“Jeff Tan Meng Yih is one of the most respectable Chevron leaders we have worked with. His integrity, fairness and solutions over the years are truly admirable and invaluable. We, at Pen Petroleum, thank him for his ever-willing support and guidance throughout our journey with Chevron as its Branded Marketer.
Best wishes to Jeff Tan, a great guy and leader, indeed. Cheers!”
2. Mr Donny Tey of Bee Guan Service Station, Johor
Donny and Jeff’s relationship goes back a long way, as long as Jeff’s time with Chevron and from the days when Jeff was still a bachelor. Hence, when Jeff got married, Donny was very honoured to join other old-time Chevron folks such as TC Khoo and Jeremy Oh at his wedding in Mentakab, Pahang.
Professionally, Donny is thankful for Jeff’s support and encouragement over the years – he was always encouraging them to do their best and strive to be the top station nationally, and was forthcoming with suggestions on how to improve sales, customer service and much more.
Describing Jeff as down-to-earth, Donny candidly says “rugi if we lose him” and wishes Jeff the best of health, adding that they will miss him.
As a final note to Jeff, Donny says: “Remember to visit an old friend when you’re free and if your son gets married, remember to invite me.”
3. Nick Shankar of Scholfield Sdn Bhd
Nick first met Jeff after he returned from Cambodia and Branded Marketers such as Scholfield came under his portfolio. They soon became good friends, with Nick saying that Jeff taught him a lot during their NTI site rides, for example: how to assess a site, how to do a traffic count, and how to decide if the site is viable or feasible.
During the many engagements and performance meetings with Jeff, he found Jeff always willing to teach, share, guide and assist the Scholfield team, and Nick truly appreciates Jeff’s honest and upfront approach when dealing with them.
One fun little fact that Nick shared is that Jeff knows each of the Scholfield team members’ names, and the team has only nice things to say about him. Nick and his team feels that it is a big loss now that Jeff has retired and they will miss him, but they still wish him a happy retirement.
4. Tuan Haji Jalil Selamat of JS Service Station and Batu Empat Service Station, Johor
Tuan Haji remembers the days when Jeff was overseeing the Southern region and the young Chang Swee Wah was the RBC reporting to Jeff. He always found Jeff very approachable and it was easy to reach out to him directly whenever urgent matters arose while the RBC was on leave.
Jeff’s professional approach to work made working with him smooth-sailing, though Tuan Haji jokingly says that “you will know when he is unhappy about a situation as it shows on his face and follows that up with “but there would never be any personal attacks or remarks. His intentions were always good with the focus on station productivity, sales etc.”
In fact, he says Jeff would also drop by the stations whenever he can, even if it’s just a quick stop. As a Retail Partner, Tuan Haji says that Jeff is a good listener and is willing to accept opinions and suggestions from Retail Partners.
Jeff is keeping his mobile number the same, so feel free to contact him to send your best wishes and reminisce about the good times – especially now that he has more time to have his teh tarik sessions with all of you.
Here’s one final note from Jeff: “While in pursuit of your dreams and aspirations, please remember to stop and smell the roses!”